Your assessment was indeed correct, my friend! Part has been replaced and we have a sort of working washing machine once again! (It's always had problems... mostly because it's as old as I am.) Also, the secondary problem was that the pipe was plugged/clogged and needed to be snaked BIG TIME!

Well... the initial problem with the washer was that it would no longer have cold water. Every setting, every cycle was just hot water. Like, scorching hot. Then, my dad tried fiddling with it a little bit. And now its "worse" and was unplugged entirely. I'm not sure what happened to make it worse. :-S So, no washer. LAME!